Wednesday

Mar 13, 2019 at 12:01 AM

Public records: documents made by a government agency which are required to be kept and maintained.

Reporters love them. They form the backbone of many news stories. A reporter’s pay can be based on drumming up stories so public records are of great value. Watch the newsroom waters churn when juicy public records are thrown in! Political scandal, big names, big money, controversy, sex or violence! Hold on to your boat! Those fish bite hard!

Reporters can do a whole story on a public record. Example: A psychiatrist gets his license revoked by the state for having sex with a patient. Oh, that’s a good one – story! Hold the press! Translate the legalese into everyday English, get a couple of comments from participants and it might be on the front page the next day.

“Unnamed sources”, “it was reported,” “some people say” — just can’t compare to the black and white of a mug shot, lawsuit or your mayor’s e-mails — all public records.

Attorneys love them. They can be a primary source of evidence. Peruse any lawsuit and you will see attorneys demanding the other side produce documents. The code language of attorneys, Latin, even has a phrase for demanding documents, subpoena duces tecum:

“A command for a witness to appear in court and produce documents.” As soon as the documents are entered into the court file they become a public record.

Private investigators love them. They are an essential element of some investigative agencies. By checking public records alone, an investigator can find criminal histories, lawsuits, property, habits, whereabouts, affiliations, reputation or character of his target.

Some legislators hate them — apparently. They dream up legislation to hide public records.